


Brief Encounter

by joouheika



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-12
Updated: 2014-03-12
Packaged: 2018-01-15 11:14:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,373
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1302841
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/joouheika/pseuds/joouheika
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It must be thought of as rather considerate, that Corporal Levi had not taken Eren's key.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Brief Encounter

A rumor is flying around the Recon Corps.

About a thief in the night, a sleepwalker, a ghost. Perhaps their new headquarters are haunted. Many of them are finding that they could not find much at all. Everyday items, precious mementos, the most oddest of items, kept disappearing from their person or the tables they sat at, the grounds they trained upon- it seemed to not matter who you be, what wall you’re from, your gender (Squad Leader Hanji’s glasses had gone missing and a spare was brought out) or station (even Commander Erwin had been affected, the quill he usually used had him opt for a pen)- at some point no matter where, there was possibility something of yours would be taken.  


Sometimes it was returned, found again on some table the owner passed by, or even in the bin. More often it was never seen of again. Clothes, snacks, supplies to hone weapons or repair a boot, a button, a favourite book, a picture, a brush, a dagger. Wallets and pencils. Napkins and spoons. An assortment of things were being reported to the necessary persons for being stolen, from this ghost. 

If not for the rumor many would have shrugged it off as their own error, their own mistake.

But because of this rumor, this is not the case.

\--

Petra is searching through her pockets.

“That’s odd,” she’s telling Eren, expression flipping from confused to apologetic.

“Sorry, Eren. I thought I had a handkerchief we could use but it appears I’ve misplaced it.”

Eren holds up his hands, apologising as well. “It’s not your fault Ms Petra…”

It isn’t her fault his hair is a total mess and there is dirt all over his face. None of which Corporal Levi would be appreciative of should he see. Auruo tsks by them and reaches into his own pocket, as if it’s the most taxing motion in the whole world and they ought to be thankful.

“I guess it can’t be helped! I’m gunna hafta give yer a hand.”

Petra makes a face, a rather sour one at Auruo as he too is having a confusing time.

“Hm? What’s this? I always keep a comb on me…”

Petra wags a finger at him.

“Corporal Levi would not have misplaced his comb. Nor would he speak in such a manner. I really wish you’d cut that out already!”

Auruo scowls at her as he looks through his pockets some more. They can neither clean Eren’s face, nor brush his hair. Corporal Levi would be here at any moment and they are in this predicament.

Erd joins them and whistles at the state Eren is in.

“So glad I’ve no part in that.”

Petra is trying to get all the twigs out from Eren’s hair as Auruo contemplates how gross it’d be to do what his mom would do in this sort of situation, when his face was dirty- lick her thumb and frown as she rubbed the dirt off, but he wasn’t rather partial to the idea and to be caught in the act of it- most possibly by the Corporal-

“What are you saying? We’re all part of the same squad, we’ll all bear responsibility if something isn’t done.”

Is what Guther says coming up to where the rest of them are, just moments after Erd. 

They’ve gathered by the stables from their forest rummaging. An activity that primarily meant obtaining berries and other edible and useful foliage. They’d done other activities however, like arguing if the trees they were passing could be used to train on with the 3d maneuver gear and if there were any bears in these woods. And then Eren had suggested perhaps they could try to find a deer like that other time…

Erd taps his chin thoughtfully.

Guther sighs, “I didn’t expect you to run that quickly after that rabbit Eren.”

Nor run head first into the bush it’d run under.

“Excuse me,” Eren is saying, mainly embarrassed because after all that struggle he’d lost the rabbit. It’d be a different story if Eren had caught the rabbit.

Erd stops tapping his chin.

“A rabbit?”

Petra leans in, on the fence, “That’s right. Why were you pursuing this rabbit so relentlessly?”

Auruo leans back, against the fence, “Is rabbit your favourite dish? Just like a brat to like that sorta thing.”

Petra elbows him and they all look at Eren.

Eren glances around at them all, before looking over to Erd.

“I noticed Mr Erd lost his lucky rabbit foot. So I thought it’d be a good way to have him obtain a new one. Besides rabbit stew isn’t my favourite, it’s Corporal Levi’s.”

Auruo has turned a particular shade of red. Petra smiles as she picks out what she thinks is the last twig from Eren’s hair. She’d known that too.

“No way, you’re into that sorta thing Erd,” Guther is saying to him, an almost teasing smile on his lips as Erd heaves a sigh that sounds exasperated but is more to hide his embarrassment. He scratches at the back of his neck.

“To be honest it’s from my girl back home, it’s important but it’s not like I believe in that sorta thing…” 

But the feeling it was given with was what was lucky. Uplifting. Sustaining. 

This time it’s Eren who flushes red as he realises it is an item that cannot be commonly replaced.

When he apologises for that-

“No need, you didn’t know,” Erd tells him, looking mildly impressed, “I’m surprised you noticed such a thing. I’ve been rather discreet about it.”

Eren nods, “Well, I noticed that as well, you only took it out when the rest of us were distracted…”

Erd laughs and ruffles Eren’s hair, much to Petra’s displeasure who’d done well in making it look as presentable as she could without a comb.

“Except you it would seem. You’ve got a sharper eye than I thought.”

There’s a small smile Eren gives at this sort of praise.

Erd pulls his hand away as Guther sorts through his belongings in his pack for his water cask. At the very least they could use that and a sleeve to clean Eren’s face, but he too cannot locate it. It is around this time Corporal Levi arrives. Annoyed he’d helped for the past hour, _again_ , looking for that quill Erwin was missing. It was something his father had given to him Erwin had said. It was urgent they find it.

Even after going through the entire office (the dust, Levi had been amazed on the amount of dust that’d been on the books Erwin had had moved over from their old place; just going to show how long it’d been since they’d been there- it’s been a rough couple of years) and thoroughly cleaning this office- still the quill had not be found. So annoying. It wasn’t like there wasn’t anything to write with. Hanji had popped out a bunch of their pens (many stained or looking like they’d been gripped too hard at some point) to share and Erwin had taken one but still he wanted that old fashioned quill…

Guther is frowning as he can’t find his water cask though he’d just had it earlier today, before Corporal Levi had seen them off. It’s to Corporal Levi’s frown, deeper than usual, he turns to see. The others with their heads hanging as Corporal Levi asks them what they’ve been up to, what they’ve accomplished, and not in the least bit failing to notice they’ve failed to all freshen up before meeting up with him.

Petra hangs her head the lowest before speaking up on their behalf. That there’d been some misunderstandings, missing items…

The ghost… Auruo had butted in to say, before biting his lip embarrassed to have suggested such a thing to Corporal Levi. Petra balks that Auruo is talking to Corporal Levi at all and Erd mentions it’s all rather eerie…

“If it’s a ghost it’s not only haunting the castle, but the woods as well,” Guther supplies as he gives up on ever finding his water cask.

Corporal Levi sighs and grabs Eren by the wrist.

“Come with me. Eren.”

Searching and cleaning all day in Erwin’s office had made him more tired than he thought, and what lecture his squad had been expecting doesn’t come. He orders them to turn in for the day. Prepare properly for dinner. And pulls Eren down to the dungeons.

\--

Eren is fidgeting nervously.

If only he’d had enough time, if only he’d not tried to catch that rabbit, he’d have had the time to clean up. Instead he’d gotten messy and burdened the others’ who had tried so hard to help him out.

Levi is scowling at his own oversight, there isn’t any water down here unless they bring it.

He orders Eren to sit on the bed as he rummages through his pockets. There is quite a bit in there today he doesn’t remember. Was he getting old? Or was it just another oversight? Perhaps he’d stored them from what he’d found in Erwin’s office. He tosses some unrecognizable items (to himself) on the nearby table. Picking out a pink frilly handkerchief from the lot, along with a small water cask.

“Don’t move,” he says as he wets the handkerchief and uses it to clean Eren’s face. The boy’s brow furrows and his nose scrunches from the cold moisture and the effort to otherwise be completely still.

Levi then picks up the comb that’s on the table, pausing when he sees it is grey and not the black one he typically carries, the black one is present too but he’s already picked up the grey- before using that as well.

There’s some other items on the table but-

“Ah,” is as close to exclamation as he gets as he notices on the table-

“That’s Erd’s rabbit foot!”

Eren exclaims. Pointing and then rising (without leave) to pick it up and examine it to confirm.

Erwin’s quill is on the table as well… bent in half….

Fuck.

“Is it? You can give it to him at dinner then.”

Eren looks over, expression confused, mouth a frown as he ponders if he should say what he’d like to say. Levi is about to tell him no when he speaks anyway (without leave).

“Why do you have this Corporal Levi? Did you find it?”

It was odd to Eren that Levi would have such an assortment of items in his pockets.

“You could say that,” Levi tells him, looking over what else is on the table. Too much crap that wasn’t his that’s for sure. He’d have to thoroughly wash his hands as soon as possible. He puts together what happened just as Eren tries. Levi can practically hear the gears of his brain, grinding.

Then-

“Did you… stea-” and when that seemed too offensive- “are you the ghost sir?”

Eren’s ankle throbs from where Levi kicked it.

Certainly not a ghost.

“It seems old habits die hard.”

Is what Levi tells him. 

Definitely not a ghost.

How Levi had come to have all this in his pockets is as such. The habits from his days in the underground had surfaced again. To Levi pick pocketing comes as easy as breathing does (sometimes more so) he must have fallen back into the habit… maybe from the stress of all the shit that’d been happening recently. Having to look after this rather disobedient beast number one on a rather long list.

“Who said you could stand?”

Eren plops back down on the bed. Sitting upright.

Is looking at him rather seriously.

“Sir! If I may, you are Humanity’s Strongest! There isn’t anything on this earth you can’t kill!”

“What’s that? Sounds more like praise for yourself.”

Since Levi is the only one capable of killing Eren.

Levi picks up the handkerchief and scrubs Eren’s face some more.

He scrubs at Eren’s apologies.

Satisfied when Eren’s skin is flushed and a little bruised (for now) but clean.

\--

At dinner.

Erd is glad and even more impressed that Eren found his lucky rabbit foot, though rabbit stew would have been delicious. Only a few of them are fond of pork. Auruo being one though he doesn’t say anything on the matter. Guther breaks his bread into smaller pieces, declining the butter Hanji offers him and passes it on to Petra.  


All the while Corporal Levi picks at the pork stew. His bread is thick with butter. Eren doing quite the opposite. 

Eren tries to wipe his mouth when Corporal Levi looks over to him. Intensely. But manages to drop his napkin that he’d placed in his lap (least it isn’t a spoon this time).

Levi sighs, and orders Eren not to move.

Near everyone looks in surprise when he rises (Hanji in amusement; Erwin doesn’t look up at all from eating, this is his favourite stew) to walk over to Eren. Rummaging in his lightened pockets he pulls out that pink handkerchief again and proceeds to scrub Eren’s face. Again.

Petra stands up in her chair, the feet of the wooden legs skidding as she can’t help herself, hands upon the table, her own napkin falling from her lap- “My handkerchief!”

And at the very least to the Special Operations Squad, Squad Leader Hanji, and Commander Erwin. The rumor of the ghost of their new headquarters is confirmed, though unlike Eren they all have the sense not to say as bluntly for this being so.

\--

It had been Eren’s idea.

Levi had told him.

(For it indeed had been, Levi wouldn't have bothered fixing it but Eren had insisted and taken up the task himself.)

To use the bandage.

A doctor’s son truly, it made it look like the quill had been plucked from a wounded but healing bird.

Erwin is pleased his quill has been returned, repaired or not.

Levi knows the blotch of ink Erwin has spilled not once but four, four times on the surface of his desk, is just for him. Levi leaves Erwin’s office having returned the pen, to resume his duties elsewhere.

Erwin is going to need more than a bit of bandage to fix his office door.


End file.
